


But

by emilyprobably



Category: X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Domestic Bliss, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Happy!Erik, Maybe a little OOC, but still pretty close i think, this took to long
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-21
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2020-03-09 05:41:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18910708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emilyprobably/pseuds/emilyprobably
Summary: Erik, in between the morning coffee and late night movies, realized that he had achieved something that was for so long out of his reach.Erik Lehnsherr, after years of pain and tragedy, found peace.





	But

**Author's Note:**

> I just want Erik to be happy

Erik, in between the morning coffee and late night movies, realized that he had achieved something that was for so long out of his reach.

 

Erik Lehnsherr, after years of pain and tragedy, found peace.

 

-

 

He was alone.

 

After fleeing D.C., Erik had no choice but to travel by himself. He jumped from place to place picking up odd jobs. After earning enough money, he would, once again, pick up and leave.

 

Erik meets you at a diner. It’s a small joint, open 24 hours and in a bad part of town, but the food is hot and he doesn’t fear greedy humans. He sits at the bar, a piece of pie in front of him; he’s not really eating, mostly just picking it apart. The door chimes with your entry, and Erik’s eyes immediately fall on you and your group of friends. 

 

He can tell that all of you have been drinking, some more than others. The waitress seems to recognize you’re group, speaking with a familiarity that only friends would have.

 

He tries to refocus on his pie, or rather the torn apart remains of it, when you plop down next to him. You smell like a bar, but when he meets your gaze there is  more sobriety than intoxication. 

 

“Are you actually going to eat that?” is the first thing you say to him. Your tone is playful, the mischief in your eyes is natural.

 

He really wants to ignore you, or snap at you, or anything to get you to leave.

 

_ But,  _ he really was tired of being alone.

 

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to talk to strangers? You’re drunk, a lesser man would take advantage of that.”

 

If anything, your smile widens. “I only had one drink, my friend spilt beer all over me. Even if I was drunk, you must have better things to do at one o’clock in the morning then to take advantage of me. Like eating that pie, for example.” 

 

“Don’t you have anything better do? What’s brought you here, pestering me, so late at night?” He continues to play along with you. He doesn’t want to think to hard about it.

 

“I  _ could _ think of a better thing to do, but it still involves you.”

 

You were human. You were human, younger than him, but right now he hated himself just enough to continue.

 

“I don’t even know your name.”

 

You lean in closer and rattle off a proper introduction. Your name echoes in his head, only adding to the delirium he’s felt since you sat down next to him.

 

“I’m Erik.”

 

-

 

He wakes up to an empty room. You must have left sometime during the night, and Erik couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Finally, after months of being alone, he got some of the intimacy he didn’t realize he was desperately craving.

 

He forced himself to bury the disappointment. You were human. You had helped him out, but it was time to move on. Erik couldn’t waste his time with you; he had bigger plans.

 

_ But _ , he kept thinking about you.

 

So, he found himself the following Thursday sitting in a bar. Specifically the bar that was closest to the diner, hoping that maybe you and your friends had a weekly outing.

 

You walked in an hour after he got there. Erik sat up a little straighter, desperately trying to hide his nerves with good posture. You had yet to see him, content to wander around the bar.

 

It wasn’t until you approached someone else, someone that wasn’t him, that Erik decided to rise from his seat and approach you. All it takes is a delicate tap on the shoulder and, suddenly, all of your attention snaps to him.

 

It feels like he can breathe again.

 

You’re smile is so warm, _so_ _nice,_ he can’t help himself. Erik _knows_ your human, he _knows_ this can’t be anything _real,_ not the real that he felt with Charles, Raven, and the other mutants, but he _wants_ it to be.

 

So, even if it’s fake, he leads you back to his bed.

 

-

 

You don’t go on dates. Erik is very particular about his situation with you. You’re friends with benefits, nothing more. Erik needs someone to fill the void, and he refuses to have anything more with a human.

 

_ But _ , you certainly act like a couple.

 

More often than not you end up at his apartment, wrapped up in his bed until dawn breaks the morning sky. He’s very adamant about avoiding you apartment; it’s to personal for him to handle. Together, several take-out orders are placed, and some nights you both sit on his small, ragged couch reading a novel. Still, everytime Erik always leads you to his bed, and you always leave in the morning.

 

“Erik, I think I need to go get breakfast food right now or I  _ will _ die.”

 

“Darling, it’s a little passed midnight.”

 

“Erik.”

 

“I just fucked you into oblivion, don’t you want to get some rest?”

 

“I will literally die, Erik.”

 

A heavy sigh erupts from him, he complains the whole way, but Erik still finds himself walking with you to get breakfast food.

 

He doesn’t want to think about the way his hand naturally entangled itself with yours.

 

-

 

You don’t come calling at his door one Saturday. Erik doesn’t want to be concerned. You’re not in a relationship or anything. He has no moral obligation to make sure you’re okay.

 

_ But,  _ he still makes his way to your apartment.

 

The smile that usually adorns your face is absent when he arrives. Your eyes are puffy, and the look you give him is borderline cruel.

 

“Sorry, Erik, but I don’t feel like being your plaything tonight. Bigger and better things, I suppose.”

 

He stops you from shutting the door on him. “Darling,” he starts carefully. He’s never seen you act this way, never known you to be so cold. “Are you alright?”

 

“What happened to no commitment?”

 

“Sometimes-” he hesitates- “sometimes plans change. Just let me in, I want to help you.”

 

He doesn’t learn what was bothering you that day. Instead, Erik lays in your room, cradling you. You take all the emotional comfort you need from him, and he gives you it.

 

He doesn’t think about just how much he would give you.

 

-

 

You’re walking with him one day. It was just recently decided that Erik and your relationship was more than just sex. You were officially a couple now. Erik knew he should have been guilty.

 

_ But, _ he was just too happy.

 

You’re twirling down the street, positively glowing with happiness; Erik can’t help but be entranced with you. You’re everything he needed.

 

It’s then when a drunk driver decides to turn down the street. The car was screeching towards you, you were going to  _ die- _

 

He stuck his arm out and yelled your name-

 

Erik swerved the car just in time. You were safe, the car crashed into street light, and you were  _ safe. _

 

Then he runs to you, he wraps you tightly in his arms, he’s near tears, but it’s okay because you’re okay, you’re  _ safe. _

 

“That was pretty close, huh?” You’re voice is muffled from being crushed into his chest. “I’m fine, Erik, really. We’re just lucky that he turned at the last minute. Otherwise I don’t think I’d be standing here with you.”

 

“Yes,” he murmurs, “yes darling, we’re real lucky.”

 

-

 

Over time, your apartment starts to become his apartment as well. He starts to leave behind his cheap place, and finds a home with you. You’re the last face he see at night and the first he sees in the morning. Erik wants to take the plunge; he wants to ask if he can formally move in and advance your relationship just a bit further.

 

_ But,  _ the chance of rejection, even the slightest one, stops him.

 

That evening, he gets out of work before you. Erik starts dinner, sets the table, and it’s so mundane he’s almost surprised with himself.

 

“Erik,” you’re voice fills the quiet apartment. “I’m home. I picked up the mail from your apartment.”

 

“Thank you, darling. I’ve been meaning to go get it.”

 

“Your landlord and I had a conversation.”

 

“You did?” 

 

“Yes,” You glanced behind him at the stove. “Your pot is boiling over.”   
  
“Shit, shit shit,” he rushed to stove, frantically trying to save dinner. He never was that great of a cook.

 

“The lease for your apartment is just about up. I was thinking that, well, it seems silly for both of us to pay separate rents when we live together. Maybe, it’s time, to you know, just officially move in together?”

 

Instantaneously, fixing your dinner is wiped from his mind. He turns around and embraces you, overjoyed with this turn of events. “Yes! Yes, I would love to live with you. I’ve wanted to ask you for ages, of course you would be braver than me.” He peppers your face with light kisses, and you, in turn, begin to laugh.

 

“I’ll admit, I didn’t expect you to be so excited. I think I have to add a condition though, you have to order us food, ASAP. Whatever you started to create over there, I don’t think it’s edible.”

 

“For you, my dear, anything.”

 

-

 

Erik, for all the bad decisions that he makes, isn’t stupid. He knows that he has to tell you about Magneto. He has to talk about everything he’s done and seen.

 

_ But, _ he doesn’t think he’s ready to lose you.

 

So it stays a secret. He keeps his mouth shut, and for the first time in his life he enjoys being Erik Lehnsherr, a normal person with a normal job and normal girlfriend. He takes walks in the park, goes out for a few drinks, and he takes a moment to  _ live  _ life, rather than just  _ surviving _ life. 

 

Everything is perfect. He’s in the apartment he now shares with you, the television lightly playing in the background. His head is in your lap. Your fingers are tangled in his hair. He thinks he’s as close to heaven as he’ll ever be.

 

“I’m Magneto.” He just blurts it out, shocking himself. He immediately jolts from your lap, covering his mouth. 

 

Erik doesn’t want to turn and look at you. He doesn’t want to see the disgust and hatred. He doesn’t want to hear you tell him to leave, he doesn’t want-

 

“I know.”

 

He turns to you almost frantically, wondering if he misheard you. Or maybe he didn’t mishear, and you’ve been planning a cruel joke on him. Either way he’s confused and desperate, desperate for this to work out, but skeptic of any positive outcome.

 

“You know?”

 

You smile at him, the same smile from the night he first met you. “Of course I know. Your name was pretty suspicious. And that car, the one that almost hit me remember?” Like he could forget. “The driver said that he didn’t turn the car, he had no idea how the car turned. It seemed pretty obvious at that point.”

 

He’s dumbfounded. Really at a complete loss of words. After a few moments of silence, he can collect himself enough to say, “You didn’t say anything.”

 

“I figured you’d bring it up when you were ready.”

 

“You don’t hate me?”

 

“Why would I hate you?”

 

“Because I’m a monster. I’ve killed countless people, hell, I called for the extinction of your race. I deserve your hate.”

 

“You’ve never hurt me, and I haven’t seen you plot against my race once. We live together, I think I would know if you were a monster.”

 

It’s absurd the amount of faith you have in him. He can’t help but laugh. He laughs and falls against you. 

 

“I don’t understand, what’s so funny?”

 

“Nothing, darling, I just can’t believe how lucky I am.”

 

-

 

He should have known that sticking in one spot would only lead to getting caught. No, he did know, but he never expected you to get hurt when he was eventually found.

 

It wasn’t the government that found him, it was just some lunatic he’d pissed off somewhere along the road. The man had taken you,  _ hidden you, _ and Erik was enraged.

 

He was going to burn the world down to find you. 

 

_ But _ , he needed some help.

 

He goes to Charles and his school. He begs for help. Literally drops to his knees and begs, because he needs to find you, he needs you more than he needs to breathe. Charles takes pity on him. He offers a deal. “Come, stay at the school from now on, and I’ll help you find her.” He accepts without hesitation. 

 

Erik rips the place you’re held in apart, bolt by bolt. He finds you, bruised and unconscious, but alive and carries you out. The man that kidnapped you, he deserves hours of agony, but Erik is tired, so with a flick of his wrist, he slaughters the man.

 

You’re put into the school’s infirmary. It takes several nurses and doctors to separate him from you, and he doesn’t stop fighting to be by your side until Charles talks him down.

  
“Erik, if you want what’s best for her you’ll get out of the way. Wait outside, she’ll be fine, I promise.”

 

He waits. For hours and hours, until, finally, they allow him to see you. When you look up and smile at him, it feels like coming home.

 

-

 

Fights between you and Erik are uncommon, but when the happen, the world shakes in response. Erik, he loves you so much,  _ so, so,  _ much. He would do anything for you, he strived to provide you with the best life you could have. 

 

_ But,  _ even he has to admit, sometimes his communication skills aren’t the best.

 

This particular fight was about living arrangements. Erik was now living at the Charles’ school, he even picked up teaching one or two classes. Charles, with his infinite kindness, had also offered you a place at his school. Erik wanted you to go back home.

 

“I don’t understand, Erik,” You were overwhelmed, exasperated from what seemed like a foolish argument. “Charles is fine with it, the students are fine with it, why don’t you want me here?”

 

“You don’t belong here.”

 

You didn’t cry or scream at him. You withdrew into yourself, and looked at him with eyes filled to the brim with hurt, hurt that he caused. “Erik,” you start, slowly. “are you ashamed of me?”

 

“No! No, that’s not what I meant!”

 

“Then what did you mean?” 

 

“I meant,” he hesitates, just enough to sow the seeds of doubt further in you. You’re about to walk out, you’re about to leave him, so he does his best to block the door. “Wait, just wait, I’m sorry. You know that I’m a man of action, rather than a man of words. I’m not ashamed of you, how could I be? You’re my saving grace, but you have a career, a  _ life. _ I don’t want you to give that up for me. I couldn’t ask you for that.”

 

“Oh, Erik,” You begin to walk closer to him. Your hand raises up to touch his face, and the touch is so gently, with so much love and generosity, Erik can’t stop himself from shuddering. “You silly man. I can take my career here. I’m not giving up my life to live with you, you  _ are _ my life.  _ I love you.  _ I want to be with you.”

 

“I’ll never know what I did in life to deserve you, but I am eternally grateful. I love you, darling, I love you more than you could ever know.”

 

-

 

Life at the school, for the most part, was good. It certainly was an adjustment; you and Erik had lived alone for so long, and now you were surrounded by kids and adults. It was almost a culture shock. After a few months, the two of you adapted.

 

You had become a guidance counselor of some sort, the students loved you, finding it easy to come to you about simple affairs they needed advice about. It was almost inevitable that whenever Erik would search you out, you would be surrounded by different kids asking different questions. It never failed to put a smile on his face.

 

_ But, _ he couldn’t help himself from craving some alone time with you.

 

Erik created a plan. With Charles permission, he started to build a house in a secluded area of the school grounds. He accosted help from different people, and worked tirelessly. He dedicated his free time to it, and somehow he just barely kept it a secret from you. When it was finally finished, created perfectly to his standards, he led you there excitedly.

 

“Is it really necessary to cover my eyes, Erik? I’m thrilled to see what this secret project of yours is, but this seems a bit excessive.”

 

“By patient, darling, it’ll be worth the wait.” With a little bit of stumbling, Erik eventually leads you to the house. “Okay, open your eyes.”

 

You gasp. You’re overwhelmed, because this, a house, a  _ home _ , is not what you expected. “Can we, can we go inside?”

 

“Of course!” He leads you inside, and continues to ramble. “I got most of the furniture from our old apartment, but I bought some more. I’ll change anything you don’t want-”

 

“No! No, Erik it’s really prefect.” You were standing at the fireplace, where the one photo of you and Erik was framed. It was a polaroid your friend took. You faced the camera smiling, and Erik was staring down at you. “This is wonderful, it’s really, really, just perfect.”

 

“There is one more little surprise.” By the time you turn around, Erik already has a small metal band floating between the two of you. The ring is simple, but elegant, everything you would expect from him. “I feel that it’s only fair that I get to place a condition, considering you placed one before I officially moved in with you.”

 

“Are you being serious?”

 

He doesn’t get down on one knee. The ring floats into his hand, and Erik walks closer to you, until you’re practically pressed against each other. He raises the ring between you and him. “Marry me?”

 

You throw your arms around him. “Yes, yes, yes, of course! Of course I’ll marry you!” 

 

He’s never been this happy.

 

-

 

He faces you at the altar. You’re wonderful, fantastic, beautiful, handsome, and everything he could ever want. This was perfection. If he died now, he would have no regrets.

 

_ But, _ Erik also couldn’t wait for what the future held.

 

Erik, in between the morning coffee and late night movies, realized that he had achieved something that was for so long out of his reach.

 

Erik Lehnsherr, after years of pain and tragedy, found peace.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I really enjoyed writing this one!


End file.
